Things Worth Missing
by ohcosima
Summary: So it became a rather unusual habit. She would fall asleep (not purposefully, it just happened), and she could count on the beautiful and nameless stranger to wake her up just in time for her to hop off the bus.


Clarke was never fond of public transportation. The bus she used to take when she went to high school was always crowded and she had to stand during the whole ride, tightly holding onto something just to prevent herself from falling on a complete stranger. It had happened several times; she still grimaced at the memory.

When she'd moved for college and began using the train, she had fervently wished she had brought her bike with her. And if Clarke Griffin willingly chose physical exertion over inert transition, it meant a lot.

Now that she had begun using the bus to go to her art classes though, she quite didn't mind. The ride there was pretty uneventful; Clarke put her ear buds on and just concentrated on music until she reached her stop. She hopped off as soon as she arrived, and walked the distance to the college building.

She put in art the most she could. Her whole life she had been using it as a stress relief. It had always been something that she craved to do. It wasn't like she couldn't not do it, but it worked just like caffeine and nicotine: going without for a long time meant slowly losing her mind. She didn't even notice it. She would stop drawing for a while, maybe in order to concentrate on school, or work, or only because she didn't feel like it. Slowly, her emotions began bottling up and she became a ball of stress and snappiness. She just didn't know how to share what she felt in other ways.

So, even though now she was busy with work almost every day and she joined Wells in his quest to save the world one peace rally at a time, she started art courses. She smiled at the thought of him, remembering when they were teenagers and he confessed he had a crush on her. At the time Clarke was dating Finn, whom she had dumped a couple of months afterwards after discovering she had been the other woman the whole time. She teamed up with his (at the time) girlfriend and kicked his ass majorly. She cried herself to sleep for a while, but she gained a good friend and also an experience, however painful it was.

However, Clarke did her best to stay focused during the class, taking notes of every word of what the professor said. It was a three hours long course, and while Clarke would usually put on her game face and get on with it without complaints, it was indeed tiresome to pay attention after an entire day. But it was her only source of relief, so, even through half-opened eyelids, she soldiered on.

Besides, she got to sleep on her ride home. Well, she hadn't planned to, the first time it happened, but it turned out just fine. She drifted off to sleep after the first couple of minutes, and she would have truly missed her stop and ended somewhere else entirely if only a kind girl who had been sitting near her hadn't softly nudged her side and whispered, "Hey, you're going to miss it. Next stop is yours. Well, ours." She laughed lightly.

At the time, she jumped awake with the realization and hurriedly thanked the girl, rushing out of the doors, while she got up too, still smiling at her with delight. But when she came back home and prepared for the night, she replied in her head the way she had said it. She wanted to laugh at the situation, because they had been seating near each other almost all of the times Clarke came back from art classes. The girl was already there when Clarke got in, usually with her ear buds on. She hadn't really acknowledged her before then, so she didn't notice her soft features, nor did she hear her voice.

When she woke up though, her face seemed incredibly close to her own. Big eyes, long eyelashes and the plumpest lips. Needless to say, Clarke had needed a long moment before coming back to Earth completely.

So it became a rather unusual habit. She would fall asleep (not purposefully, it just happened), and she could count on the beautiful and nameless stranger to wake her up just in time for her to hop off the bus. They exchanged smiles now, playful and thanking. Clarke began looking forward to her ride home quicker than she could realize.

"Now, I need you to think about a face. It can be any kind of face. Your mother, your brother, your lover. A teacher, a stranger, whoever you want."

She popped in her mind immediately. _Lexa_. Now she knew her name. It was written on her backpack, four angry-red cubical letters. Probably short for something, but Clarke liked the taste of it on her tongue. She liked the sound of it, she liked thinking about that name and about the girl. Or well, her idea of the girl. She really didn't know the first thing about her.

She had considered asking her things, but why should a girl spill personal information to a nobody on a bus?

Clarke wasn't bad-intentioned by a long shot, but she couldn't hope the other girl saw her virtue and well-meaning curiosity just _shine_ through her eyes and decided to trust her.

Clarke could gather a bit of information of her own, anyway. The girl had to be from TonDC, since she took the bus that went downtown. Only, when they got off, she went Clarke's opposite direction. She was probably around Clarke's age, judging from her appearance and demeanor. Also, she was or had been with someone whose name began with a C. It was written on the side of her old backpack, a faded heart with two initials inside it. L + C forever. Young love, so romantic.

That admittedly wasn't a lot, but puzzles are made with pieces, right?

She was daydreaming and she wasn't even ashamed about it. Lincoln kept explaining today's assignment and she hadn't grasped a word.

When the bus halted, she didn't feel as sleepy as she did as per usual. She buzzed with the thought that the girl would be there and that she had finally decided to ask for her name and start an actual conversation.

She got on the bus, taking a deep breath and trying to calm herself down. She didn't want to come off as too eager or overly excited. Nobody was this thrilled at this hour of the day for no reason, she would seem crazy.

She turned to look at the usual spot and went to sit and she saw Lexa already sitting there, completely engrossed in a thick volume she was reading. Clarke found her cute, seeing as she knitted her eyebrows in concentration and puckered her mouth. Hunched over as she was, her hair fell in her face, concealing it almost completely. She tried to keep it from interfering with her reading by frequently maneuvering it behind her ears or just out of her face, but it was just matter of time before it slowly fell in front of her again.

She huffed a couple of times, and that made Clarke chuckle. The girl heard her, but she didn't give Clarke more than a quick glance before returning to her book.

At some point, though, she closed it and sat straight. Clarke thought it could be just the right moment. She could ask her what she was reading, make a witty comment about the way she was almost enraptured by it. But then Lexa yawned, stretching a little in her seat. Clarke kept her gaze fixed out the pane, internally urging herself to just say something.

She closed her eyes briefly, just to muster up boldness. She turned, ready to say whatever her mouth chose, but she was met with an unexpected plot twist.

Lexa had her head propped on the headboard, her lips were slightly parted and her eyes closed.

"Dammit," Clarke stared at the sleeping Lexa in front of her, cursing her awful timing. She couldn't help a small laugh despite her disappointment, because now the roles were reversed and it was comical, really.

Ten minutes passed until they were about to reach their stop. Clarke tried shaking her.

"Hey, hey." She attempted, but the girl wasn't responding. She gave her a more decisive prod, and this time she jolted awake.

"What?" Lexa said as she came to her senses. She quickly turned to look at Clarke, surprise evident in her face. "Sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep,"

"Don't worry at all," Clarke smiled at her, "Besides it was about time it happened the other way round."

Lexa laughed warmly, "You could say that. I'm Lexa by the way."

"Clarke." She accepted her hand, looking at her in the eyes.

"Are you from around here?"

"Yeah, I live near TonDC University. Are you?"

"I live in Polis. I thought I saw you somewhere."

"May be. The animal shelter, the hospital, Miller's pub…" she listed.

"You frequent the hospital?" Lexa asked. She sounded skeptical, but Clarke understood her concerns.

"Well, I don't just visit there for courtesy, if that's what you thought," she laughed, "My mother works there. Dr. Griffin."

"Oh," she sounded uncomfortable, and her expression too betrayed a little irresolution.

"Why, do you know someone there?"

"I did." She smiled, but it's insincere. Clarke sensed it and tried to change the subject.

"And what forces a girl like you to take the bus this late?"

"A girl like me? I could ask you the same question, you know." She smirked.

"I meant— I mean, you seem young." Clarke stumbled on her words, surprised by her sudden spurt of confidence. "And besides, I'm going back home from art classes."

"So you're an artist." Lexa smiled interestedly.

"Kind of. More like an art enthusiast, but I don't care about labels." Clarke shrugged, "What about you? I mean, if you feel like sharing."

"You couldn't do much with knowing this information, really. I work at a diner."

"Do I possibly know of it?"

"Mh, The Aunt's Pie? It's actually my aunt Indra's diner. Really lame, I know. You can mock me."

Clarke grinned, "No, it's kind of cute, I'm gonna swing by sometimes."

"If you don't fall asleep on the bus there," Lexa joked.

Clarke faked indignation, "How dare you? You're just as guilty as I am!"

"Well, the score is 65 to 1, so…"

"You're exaggerating, please."

Lexa looked at her blankly for a second, but then she burst out laughing. "Yeah, I am. But still."

"As you said, I'm an artist. Sleep is essential for creativity."

Lexa shook her head, laughing freely. "Thank God you're cute."

Clarke laughed, but she was cheering internally at the brunette's admission. "Yeah, thank God."

They looked at each other for a moment before the both of them diverted their gaze somewhere else. Clarke didn't feel like calling it an awkward silence, it seemed quite fitting in her opinion. But when she saw Lexa about to break it, she didn't really mind.

"Wait," her concerned frown made Clarke think again. "What did you wake me up for?"

Clarke's eyes widened immediately. "Fuck." She couldn't believe she had let it happen. "We missed it."

Lexa gaped for a second, confused. As the information sunk, she closed her eyes, exasperation filling her tone. "Indra is gonna kill me."

Clarke felt a pang of guilty, "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to—"

"No, no, don't worry. Let's just wait for the other one." She brushed it off, but Clarke couldn't help but feel responsible, also hearing Lexa's slightly preoccupied tone. She had distracted her, after all.

As it approached, they got off. Clarke was expecting a cold goodbye. It all had started off so well and ended so awkwardly that it physically pained her. She certainly didn't expect Lexa's next words.

"I'm gonna take on that." Lexa said as they lingered a bit after the bus had already gone away.

"What?"

"That you're gonna swing by. I count on that."

Clarke grinned, unable to form an answer for a couple of second. "Then I'm gonna need your number. You know, to let you know when I'm going to visit." She turned to flirting.

Lexa smiled whole-heartedly, "Next time." She was ready to leave, but she corrected herself, "Well, next ride. Maybe."

Clarke smirked amusedly. The girl knew how to leave people hanging. "It's been a pleasure, Lexa."

Lexa nodded with a smile, "See you, Clarke."

From the moment they parted to when Clarke climbed in her bed, she couldn't stop the stupid grin that had stretched upon her face.


End file.
